Clint Curtis, the registrar of voters in Shasta County, California, announced plans to hire Tina Peters as an elections consultant to replace a departing deputy. Peters, a former Colorado county clerk, was released from prison in June after a state sentence commutation. Curtis stated that Peters would not have access to the county’s voting system, though he did not clarify her specific responsibilities.
Peters was convicted of four felonies and three misdemeanors in 2024 after permitting an activist affiliated with conservative figure Mike Lindell to breach her county’s election equipment while she held office in Mesa County, Colorado. The breach resulted in the publication of sensitive election information by a far-right news outlet. Colorado Governor Jared Polis, a Democrat, commuted her nine-year sentence in June despite opposition from his own clemency board and the Colorado Democratic Party.
The hiring decision drew sharp criticism from state and federal officials. Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold called it troubling that Peters would influence election administration given her convictions related to voting equipment breaches. Colorado county clerk association director Matt Crane said the move was alarming, characterizing it as evidence that election-denial proponents “have found another weak link in the chain in California.” California Senator Alex Padilla, a Democrat, called for the hiring to be stopped immediately, framing it as collusion with what he termed Trump administration election interference.
Shasta County has become a center of election-denial activism in recent years. In 2023, county officials unsuccessfully attempted to eliminate voting machines in favor of hand-counting ballots, an effort blocked by state authorities. Curtis, appointed to his position by county supervisors in the previous year, has opposed voting machine use and argued that U.S. elections face manipulation. His tenure proved controversial, with investigations concluding he created a hostile work environment, allegations he denied. The county board censured him for violations of personnel rules. Curtis faces imminent departure from office, having lost his reelection bid in June to longtime elections office employee Joanna Francescut.
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